Sun Young Mun
307
Every person somehow does believe in superstitious beliefs. In different
situations we tend to believe in superstitions although we know that they are not true.
There are many interesting superstitions with historical evidence and no evidence to
believe not only in Korea but also in many other countries.
There are superstitions originated in Korea many years ago, most people do
not believe in them anymore but there are still some superstitions that still affect
people’s life. First of all, a good example of a Korean historical superstition is “If you
hear a crow cry, you will get bad luck”. According to Korean folklore society (2008)
the history of this superstition says that King Soji received a letter that was about
conspiracy to kill him and because it was a crow who delivered this letter to him, crow started to be known as a bird that brings bad luck to people. On the other
hand, there are some examples of superstitions from Korea with no historical
evidence and that people believe it just for fun such as “Do not scribble on sleeping
person’s face” because left soul cannot find the body it belongs so the person will die
and “You will forget what you studied if you wash your hair on the test day” Korean
people believe that knowledge can be washed as well if you wash your hair.
There are many other superstitions from all over the world and people
believe it has a great impact on us. These superstitions differ from one place to
another. Firstly, an example of a superstition from other country with historical
evidence is “Four-leaf clovers represent good luck”. Legends say that when Adam
and Eve were expelled from the Garden of Eden, Eve took with her a four-leaf clover
as a remembrance of her days in Paradise. Since then, all four-leaf clovers were
represented as a symbol of luck. (Walter, 2010, p.66-67).
However, there are also superstitions from all over the world with no historical
evidence such as “Wishes come true when we pray for hope while shooting stars are
falling down” this superstition is well-known to all people and it is believed that the
shooting star delivers our wish to the other stars in the sky and a superstition from
Nigeria “There is a custom to put 2 clocks in the church. One with the correct time
and the other one with the wrong time” it is believed that people put 2 clocks to avoid
the evil to know the time of the mass.
In conclusion, superstitions with historical evidence and with no evidence at
all exist also Korea and all over the world. Although lots of superstitions exist in all
over the world, it is not recommendable to believe in all of them. Most of the
superstitions just exist for fun and they are part of culture but it is the reality that
people believe in superstitions to feel safe.
References:
Walter, G. (July 3, 2009). Dictionary of Superstitions. (pp.66-67)
Korean folklore society. (2008). Tale: Korean folklore series. (pp.455)
References: Walter, G. (July 3, 2009). Dictionary of Superstitions. (pp.66-67) Korean folklore society. (2008). Tale: Korean folklore series. (pp.455)